I'd like for you to open your
Bibles to 1 Corinthians 15. The title of this message is
The Believer's Motto. The Believer's Motto. Now Paul
said in verse 1 of 1 Corinthians 15, moreover brethren, speaking
to the church at Corinth, the church to which he ministered
for a year and a half, and then laughed and wrote back to them
some of these things. He said, I declare unto you the
gospel. I preach the gospel to you. Woe
be unto the preacher who cannot say that to those to whom he's
ministering. I preach the gospel to you. Not
another gospel, not any gospel or some gospel, but the gospel.
There is but one gospel. It's the gospel of God's grace.
It's the gospel concerning God's Son. It's the gospel of redemption
through a crucified Redeemer. Paul said, I've preached the
gospel to you. I can say that to this congregation. I have
preached the gospel. I've preached it to you, and
the next line he says, you received it. You received it, at least
in your head. Some of you in your heart, as
you'll see in a moment. You received it. At least you
received it. There's been no objection. There's been no conflict.
We have no conflict that I know about. But we've received the
gospel. And we stand in this community. We stand in this state and nation.
We take a stand publicly on television. We stand for this gospel. One
time I was preaching in Louisville, Kentucky. I was over at the Redeemer
Baptist Church in Louisville, pastored by a young man named
Kenny Edgington. Dr. N.B. Magruder had an office
in the Madrid building. He was coming over to hear me
preach that night. He worked late. He worked till
6.15 or 6.30. And he left his office on the
fifth floor and went out and got on the elevator, and the
elevator went down one floor and stopped at the fourth floor.
And there was a gentleman who had worked late also. But he'd
been working late at the bottle, and he was already at 6.30 in
the evening, fairly well gone. And he got on the elevator and
leaned up against the wall, and he looked around and he saw Dr.
Magruder, and he said, uh, how are you, Dr. Magruder? And Magruder
said, well, I'm fine, called his name. He said, where are
you going? Dr. Magruder said, I'm going
to church. You're going to church. Who are
you going to go to hear? Dr. McGruder said, well, you
wouldn't know him. He said, I'm going to hear a young man from
Ashland, Kentucky, by the name of Mayhem. Oh, I said, I know
him. He said, I used to live in Ashland.
I know him. He said, he's that fellow that
preaches the collected ones. And then he smiled and he said,
I sure hope I'm one of those collected ones, don't you? That's a true story, in case
you had a doubt. But Paul said, I preached the
gospel to you faithfully, you have received it, and I thank
God you've taken a stand. You've taken a stand. In verse
2, he says, by which also you're saved by this gospel. It's the power of God unto salvation.
Man's not saved by feeling. He's saved by the gospel of Christ. Man's not saved by church membership,
baptism, or the law. He's saved by the gospel. It's
the power of God unto salvation. Christ is the gospel. You're
saved if you keep in memory, if you hold to and not depart
from. That's the reason I said a moment
ago, he said, I preached it and you've received it. If you've
received it in your heart, you're saved. You see, salvation is
a heart work. Salvation is not a foot work
or a hand work, it's a heart work. Men are transformed in
their hearts by the grace of God. And if you keep in memory
what I preached unto you, you're saved. That is, unless you believed
in vain. unless it's only a belief in
facts, historical facts, a mental acceptance of facts, if your
heart hasn't been touched and broken, conformed to the image
of Christ, brought to receive Christ. And then he identifies
this gospel. He said, I have delivered unto
you, first of all, that which I also receive. I preached a
few nights ago in Missouri on three essentials of gospel preaching. These are three things. The first
of which is knowledge. A man cannot tell what he doesn't
know. He cannot preach to you a Christ
whom he does not know. And then sincerity and simplicity. But after the service, a man
came to him and said, You didn't use this scripture, but I think
it fits what you preach tonight. Verse 3 of 1 Corinthians 15,
I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received. Paul didn't preach the gospel
until he learned it. You can't tell what you don't
know any more than you can come back from where you hadn't been.
And a man can't preach Christ who doesn't know Christ. You
say, why don't these fellas preach Christ? They don't know him.
Why don't these fellas preach repentance? They've never repented.
Why don't these fellas preach the glory of the Redeemer? Why
don't they talk about Christ? Because they've never met Christ.
If you've ever met him, that's all you'll talk about. It says
in John 12, maybe you want to turn over there a moment, John
12, verse 41, I believe it is. Yes, verse 41, John 12, these
things said Isaiah, Isaiah, so Isaiah, when he saw his glory,
he spake of him. When he saw his glory, he spake
of him. If you ever see the redemptive
glory of Christ, if you ever see the glory of God in the face
of Christ Jesus, if you ever see the wisdom, justice, and
mercy, and love of God revealed in Christ, you'll never run out
of something to preach. You'll preach Christ. The man
that's run out of something to preach has never met the fountain
of all grace. Christ is that fountain. So he
said, I deliver unto you, first of all, that which I also receive,
how that Christ died for our sins. Christ is our Savior. He died for our sins. He's our
Redeemer, and he died for our sins according to the Scriptures. You see, this gospel we preach
is not only the gospel of God. It's not only the gospel of his
free grace. It's not only the gospel concerning
his Son. But it's the one and only gospel,
the ancient gospel, the gospel of which Moses wrote. This is
the only way the Lord God has ever redeemed anybody. We've
got the idea that the gospel was born at Calvary. Oh no, the
gospel was manifested in the person of Christ at Calvary.
The gospel was born in the mind and purpose of God before the
foundation of the world. Christ was the surety of an everlasting
covenant. His blood is the blood of an
eternal covenant, testament. He's the lamb slain before the
foundation of the world. Those Jews said, we have Moses,
meaning by that Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy,
and so forth. Christ said, if you'd have believed
Moses, you'd have believed me. Moses wrote of me. Why, he said,
they said, our father's Abraham. We're trusting in Abraham. Our
Lord said, Abraham rejoiced to see my day. He saw it and was
glad. My day, the day of redemption.
Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. We're going
to see that better tonight. Verse 4, and he was buried. He
really died. He didn't swoon. He died on that
cross. I don't understand all the particulars.
I just know that God, in the person of His Son, came down
to this earth made of a woman. made in the likeness of sinful
flesh. God dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory. The angel
said, Call his name Immanuel, God with us. Our Lord said, He
that has seen me has seen the Father. I and my Father are one.
And yet he went to the cross, God in human flesh, the divine
nature with a human nature, went to Calvary, and there he died.
The law said the soul that sinneth must die, and the law is going
to be honored. The justice of God says sin bringeth
forth death, and the justice of God is going to be honest.
And Christ went to that cross and He died, and He redeemed
us from our sins. He paid the debt. He paid the
debt. And we, justice must set us free. Almighty God will be true to
His justice. Now, I heard a preacher some
years ago He was battling what I call particular addiction.
I don't care about calling it limited atonement because there's
no limit to Christ's atonement in power, in efficacy, in sufficiency
or whatever. But I believe that the death
of Christ is particular. I believe the Lord Jesus, when
he paid the debt, he paid it. I think the scripture teaches
that when Christ redeemed us, he redeemed us. And the preacher
gave this illustration. He said the death of Christ is
like this. He said there are 200 men in jail and all of them
owe a fine. The judge had been found guilty.
The judge just fined them and sentenced them and they paid
$200 or 200 days and it was all broke. They couldn't pay. They
were bankrupt. And so he said, well, 200 days. You've got to
serve your time until you pay your debt. And when you pay your
debt, you come out. And so he said that a gracious
benefactor went down there to the judge, down to the warden
or whoever keeps the prison, and he said to him, he said,
you got 200 men in here, that's right, they all owe $200. Yeah,
that's right, well, I'm going to pay all of it. How much is
that? $4,000? $40,000? Whatever it
is. Well, it's not a lesson on math, it's a lesson in the gospel.
One day I was preaching, I said, sure, it's two and two is five,
and they got it on tape. I didn't believe I said it, but
they took me and they improved it. Well, he went down and he
said, well, I'll pay the fine, $200 for 200 men. Here's your
money. Now then, he said, here's the
gospel. Here's the invitation. That gracious benefactor goes
to the men in prison. He says, I've paid all your debts.
Now, you who want to come out can come out. And about 10 or
12 of them came out. And 182 of them, 188 of them
stayed in. Now, he said, that's it. Christ
came down here and paid the debt. Paid all the debt, he stands
before us and says, I paid all your debt, you who want life,
you who want to go to heaven, then come on, you're free from
sin and from the law and from bondage. I said, there's just
one thing wrong with that, one thing. When that man pays all
the fines of 200 million, they got to come out. He can't keep them. They're not running a free jail
out of your room and board, you go down and try to get you a
dinner today. That when justice is satisfied, it has no claim,
it has no claim on that person, he's free. That's right. When
the law is satisfied, when justice is satisfied, when the debt is
paid, the warden's going to say, get out of here, son. Get your
bag and go home. We don't want you. We got no
claim on you. We're not running a hotel down here. Get out. And
the same thing, if Jesus Christ, now you listen to me. I'm telling
you the truth. I'm not trying to build an organization
here. I'm telling you the truth of
the gospel, if the gospel is so, and it is. When Christ came
down here and met God's law, He obeyed it. When He went to
that cross and bore our sins, He died for our sins. He was
wounded for our transgressions. If He died for my sins, and He's
the Son of God, and He paid the ransom, I don't have any sins.
And the justice of God cannot condemn. That's the reason Paul
said in Romans 8, who can condemn me? Who can lay anything to my
charge? That's what that fellow says
in the jail, one of those 200. They say, you got to stay in.
No, I ain't got to stay in. I'm coming out of here. You can't
collect twice for the same crime. Amen. God's justice cannot twice
demand. Once at my breeding, sure at
his hand, then again at mine. That's not justice. That's not
God. That's what you said last night. Shall not the judge of the earth
do right? You might have right he's going to do right. He's
going to do right by everybody for whom Christ died. He's going
to do right for everybody for whom Christ didn't die. He's
going to do right by those who believe on Christ and trust Him.
He's going to do right by those who don't. They're going to serve
their time. They're going to pay their debt. And it being
an infinite debt, it can never be paid. It being an infinite
charge, it can never be satisfied. You say, well, how did Christ
satisfy our debt in such a short time comparatively compared to
eternity? The cross was a short time because
of who He was. It's not how much blood he shed,
it's who died. That's what he said, and he died
according to the Scriptures. He was buried, he really died,
verse 4, and he rose again. He rose again the third day according
to the Scriptures. He said, as Jonah was three days
and three nights in the belly of the fish, so shall the Son
of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of earth.
And his resurrection is a testimony to the sufficiency of his sacrifice. His resurrection is a testimony
to the fact that the Father has accepted what he's done, that
the sins are gone. Now listen, Christ went into
the grave as a captive. He would have never come out
of that grave if he still had sin on him. He'd still be there. He'd still be in bondage, he'd
still be in the cave, he'd still be in the grave, but he came
out without sin. He took our sins as our scapegoat
and died under the sentence of God's justice. He was buried.
out of sight, and when he came forth victoriously, he came forth
without our sins. They are no more. They've been
cast into the depths of the sea. They've been separated from us
as far as the east is from the west. They've been cast behind
the back of God, the Scripture says, wherever that is. They're
remembered no more. As Christ bears not our sins,
we bear them not. Now, that's good news. All our
sins, past, present, and future. Well, read on. And he arose,
verse 5, and he was seen. Peter saw him, Cephas, and then
the disciples, Judas didn't see him, but they're called the Twelve,
collectively. In other words, they're called
the Twelve disciples, and they went on being called the Twelve.
After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at one
time, our Lord was seen, of whom the greater part are still alive,
Paul said. But some are dead, some are falling
asleep. After that, he was seen of James,
and then of all the apostles again, and last of all, he was
seen of me as of one born out of due time, or an abortive birth. In other words, I didn't walk
with the disciples. I wasn't chosen when they were
chosen. Paul was an apostle, and our
Lord chose him, made him an apostle to the Gentiles. But all of this
came after Christ walked with the twelve and three and a half
years taught them, and they were witnesses of his trial and witnesses
of his death and witnesses of his resurrection. This is a mark
of an apostle. He must be chosen by the Lord.
There are no apostles today. There are no apostles. The apostolic
office is gone. They must be chosen of the Lord.
They must have seen the Lord. They must have seen him. Now,
I'm not talking about eyes of faith. They must have seen him, and
they must have been taught the gospel directly by the Lord himself. That's the requirements of an
apostle. But Paul said, and that's the
reason a lot of people said to Paul, you're not an apostle.
You're not an apostle. He said, I am too, I've seen
the Lord. I've seen him as one born. Not
at his due time, but one born like your son was, a born not
at the right time, the full time and so forth. He said it wasn't
my knowledge of the Lord and my walking with the Lord, my
seeing the Lord is not like the other fellas were. It was out
of season. It was unusual. I saw him on
the road to Damascus. I went into Arabia and he taught
me the gospel. It's like a child not going the
full nine months and being born like every other child, he's
born in a different fashion. But he survived by the grace
of God. And this is what Paul's saying, I've seen the Lord, I
am an apostle, as one born out of due time, but I am the least
of the apostles. I'm the least of the apostles.
I was not with the brethren when they walked with Christ. I didn't
stand with him. I didn't suffer with him. I didn't
go through the early days of persecution. I myself was a persecutor. I'm the least of the apostles.
I'm not even fit, that word meet is fit, sufficient. I'm not even
fit to be called an apostle because I persecuted the church. You
see how he feels? I want to catch his spirit here
and I want to enter into it. This is the way, Paul's not proud
at all. He's a humble man. He's a contrite
spirit. He says, I'm the chief of sinners.
I'm less than the least of all the saints. I'm not even fit
to be an apostle. I persecute. These other men
were standing with the church and for the church, and I was
trying to destroy it. That's what he said. That's the
reason sometimes I think when a man unites with a church, he
ought to unite in this spirit. You men have stood through the
years, and I haven't stood. And I'd just be grateful if you'd
let me be called brother. The average person, here are
churches stood here for the grace of God and the sovereignty of
God and the truth of God for 26 years here in this one place.
And then a new fella comes in and he says, you fellas ought
to count it an honor for me to be one of you, you know. No,
you got that backwards. You got that backwards. The spirit
in which you ought to come is, would you reckon it'd be possible
for me to be numbered with you fellas? Y'all stood. I haven't. I've compromised. I haven't done
what I ought to do. I haven't walked with God. I
haven't stood. Could it be that you would let
me be a part of this testimony?" That's what Paul said to me.
I didn't stand. I didn't stand. I persecuted
the church. I'm not fit to be called an apostle. I'm not neat
or sufficient. See what he's saying? That's
exactly what he said. But verse 10, here's his watchword,
here's his motto. He said, but by the grace of
God I am what I am. By the grace of God, I am what
I am. In other words, he's saying whatever
I was, whatever road I traveled, where God found me, where God
brought me from, it really doesn't matter right now. By the grace
of God, I am what I am. He says where I serve. It doesn't
matter where I serve. In whatever capacity I labor,
whether I sweep the floor or stand in the pulpit, that doesn't
matter. Whatever gifts or ability I possess, that doesn't matter.
By the grace of God, I am what I am. You see, catch this man's spirit.
I've preached to you. I've preached to you the gospel
which I received. And wherein you stand, the gospel
concerning Christ, his death, burial, and resurrection, his
glory, his ascension. And he said, I've seen the Lord.
I didn't deserve it. I'm not fit to be an apostle.
I'm not claiming those titles at all by any merit of my own.
I persecuted his church. But what I am, and where I serve,
and whether I lead or follow, whether I'm among the greatest
or the weakest, that doesn't matter. Whether I'm in the forefront
or whether I'm behind the lines supplying the needs as a servant,
a supply sergeant, it doesn't matter. By the grace of God,
I am what I am. Whether I'm known or unknown,
whether I'm rich or poor, whether I'm young or old, whether I'm
male or female, whether I'm black or white, it really doesn't matter.
By the grace of God, I am what I am. That's what he says. This is the song of the redeemed.
This is the motto, I believe, of every true believer. By the
grace of God, I am what I am. Whether Abraham, who survived
the decades of trial and testing and so many years, or whether
it's Abel who died after one testimony, by the grace of God
I am what I am. Whether Noah who gave a faithful
witness for 120 years against a hostile and rebellious people,
or whether the thief on the cross who laid hold of Christ in his
dying moment, by the grace of God I am what I am. Whether the
preacher who proclaims Christ to thousands, or whether the
teacher who sits with four or five primary children around
her knee, telling them about Christ. By the grace of God,
I am what I am. Whether the busy executive whose
day is filled with decisions and problems and all of these
things, or whether the lonely widow who sits by herself in
her home, by the grace of God, I am what I am. That's what I'm
saying. And this glorious truth reaches
to every area of every day, to every blessing, to every trial,
to every victory, to every defeat, to every act of His divine and
good providence by the grace of God, I am what I am. I'd like
to lay hold on that, wouldn't you? Well, I'm going to divide it
in four parts and give them to you quickly. And this, as a personal
testimony, I can say, first of all, by the grace of God, I am
what I am, is my doctrine. That's my doctrine. Now, I'm
not a slave to doctrine. I don't want to be. I don't want
you to feel that I am. But we must have a doctrine like
a body has to have a skeleton, like a house has to have framework,
like a building has to have a foundation. We've got to have doctrine. Our
Lord told us to be ready to give a reason, an answer to every
man that asks us a reason for what we believe, and these are
my reasons. This is my doctrine, by the grace of God I am what
I am. First, by his grace he elected me. Now brethren, I'm
not ashamed of the gospel, I'm not ashamed of the word of God,
I'm not ashamed of the words which God uses in his words.
And the word elect and election and elects and elected is used
over and over again in God's Word. Our master said, you didn't
choose me, I chose you. And I readily confess that, I
readily admit that. I will maintain this truth against
all comers that God elected his people. Second Thessalonians
2.13 says, God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation
through sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth.
Ephesians 1.3 and 4 says, according as he chose us in Christ, when? Before the foundation of the
world. Why? According to the good pleasure of his own will.
That's the Bible. That's what God's Word says. It was not the results of something
God saw in me that caused Him to choose me, it was by His grace
He chose me. Our Master said, one day a group
of people said, if you be the Christ, why don't you just put
it in plain words and tell us? He said, I did, I told you. He
said, but you didn't believe me. You didn't believe me because
you're not of my sheep. My sheep hear my voice and they
follow me. When he prayed in the Garden
of Gethsemane in John 17, or wherever that prayer was prayed,
he said, Father, I pray not for the world. I pray for them which
thou hast given me. They are thine, and you gave
them me. And then he said in John 6, 37, all that my Father
giveth me will come to me. Him that cometh to me I'll in
no wise cast out. You wouldn't think that the salvation
of a sinner would catch God by surprise, would you? Who is God? You wouldn't think that God doesn't
know who his people are, would you? Well, how long has he known
it? He said to those in Matthew 7,
I never knew you. He said, I know my sheep. I have
drawn you with an everlasting love. So this is my doctrine. By his grace, he elected me.
By grace alone. I didn't deserve it, but he chose
me. Secondly, by his grace, he redeemed
me. This is all under the first point,
my doctrine. This is my doctrine. By the grace
of God, I am what I am. He chose me, and He redeemed
me. God loved me and sent His Son
into the world. In the fullness of time, God
sent His Son into the world, made of a woman, made under the
law, to redeem them that were under the law. It's all by his
grace. He redeemed me. It's not by works
of righteousness which we've done, but according to his mercy
he had saved us. Peter said we're not redeemed
with corruptible things such as silver and gold, but with
the precious blood of Christ. The work of redemption is not
a cooperative effort, Christ and men. It's a work only performed
by Christ. He fulfilled every requirement
of the law. He satisfied every demand of
God's justice. Right now, He is our High Priest,
and in this matter of justification and redemption and sanctification
before the Father, we're totally passive. Now that's absolutely
so. Christ, by His grace, redeemed
me. And then thirdly, by His grace,
He called me. By his grace he called me. Believers
are chosen by God's grace, they're redeemed by God's grace, and
it's by God's grace that we're called to Christ. In other words,
he crosses our path. Go through the New Testament.
Our Lord Jesus Christ, all the people whom he was pleased to
save, Jay, at one time he crossed their path. Supernaturally, he crossed their path. Providentially,
he crossed their path. The living Christ. Now they were
already in religion. Everybody had religion. The Samaritan
woman had religion. She was a rebel, but she had
religion. She talked about religion. She said, our father Jacob built
this well. She said, our father's worshiping this mountain. She
said, the Messiah's coming. She had the facts, but not the
faith. But one day our Lord crossed
her path there at the well. And he created an interest in
her heart. He said, you knew who was talking to you. If you
knew anything about the gift of God, you'd ask of me, and
I'd give you living water. And she said, I'll take some
of that living water. He created an interest, and he presented
a problem to her, the problem of sin. And then he told her
who he was. He crossed Zacchaeus' path. He
came under the train. He said, Zacchaeus, come down.
I'm going to your house. He also is a son of Abraham.
He also is a son of Abraham. Well, there are sons of Abraham
all around there. Physical sons of Abraham. This man's a spiritual
son of Abraham. He crossed the path of blind Bartimaeus. He
was coming out of Jericho. The Lord of glory met that blind
beggar. He crossed the path of the thief
on the cross. In that hour, he revealed himself
to it. That's right. And our Lord Jesus Christ will
cross the path of everyone whom he calls in his power, in his
person, in his glory, in his true gospel, in a revelation
of himself. Now you can meet a lot of other
Jesuses and never be saved. But if you're ever saved, you'll
meet the living Christ. And he'll cross your path. He'll
cross your path with his gospel. And you'll hear it. And he'll
call you. He'll call you by his grace and he'll call you by his
spirit. So this is my doctrine. This is the reason I'm on television
and here in this church and other places where we preach. Our emphasis
is over and over again this gospel. This redemptive work of Christ,
Christ the Creator, Christ the Incarnate, Christ the Crucified,
Christ the Risen, Christ the Ascended One, Christ the High
Priest, Christ the King, Christ the Mediator, Christ coming again,
because I'm trying to find His sheep. I'm going to run into
some sheep somewhere, and I want to tell them the gospel or the
truth when I cross their path, because I'm God's messenger,
His ambassador, and I've got to tell them about Christ. And
that's the reason I don't spend my time preaching on civil rights
and wrongs and wet and dry issues and what's wrong with the high
schools and pathetical things about what's going to happen
to the Jews and Russia and all these other things, is his sheep
need to hear his gospel. First place, I don't know anything
about those things, you know. But I do know this gospel. And
I'm going to keep preaching this gospel because he crosses our
path and he calls by his word. He calls by his gospel. Now by
his grace he chose me, by his grace he redeemed me, by his
grace he called me, and by his grace he keeps me. Turn to Philippians
1, let me show you this verse 6. Philippians 1 verse 6, here
the Apostle Paul says this in the book of Philippians chapter
1 verse 6, he said, I'm confident of this very thing that he which
hath begun a good work in you will perform it. He's going to
complete it. He's going to finish it. He's
going to continue it until the day of Jesus Christ. If God starts
something, he'll finish it. We don't. And when life's journey
is over and I, the dear Savior's face shall see, I'll praise him
forever and ever for saving a sinner like me. That's my doctrine.
All right, secondly, by the grace of God I am what I am is my experience. It's my experience. Now, not
only my doctrine, but my experience. And I mean by that this. I mean
that every day I'm reminded of the fact that if it weren't for
the grace of God, I'd be the most miserable rebel this side
of hell. I know that. I know that. Every day this truth lights up
in my heart in bright lights. By the grace of God I am what
I am. It's not just a doctrine, it's
a personal experience and it's based on three things. Number
one, not a day goes by that I'm not aware of the depths of my
depravity. Are you? Can you say with Paul,
over here in Romans 7, turn over there just a moment, and let's
look at Romans 7, verse 18. Can you say this, Romans 7, 18,
I know that in me, that is in my flesh dwelleth no good thing. I hate pride of grace. I despise,
and I know God despises, spiritual pride, spiritual haughtiness. These preachers on television,
They're nauseating. I don't know whether they are
to you, but they're such proud, arrogant. They're so righteous. They're so good. They're so holier
than thou. I hope I never give that impression
that I'm not still a human being trusting in the grace of God.
Paul says, I know in me, in my flesh dwelleth no good thing.
The will is present with me. I have a desire to be perfect.
I have a desire to be like Christ, don't misunderstand, no sir,
wouldn't misunderstand that. But how to do that, how to perform
that which is perfect, that which is holy, that which is most glorifying
to God, I don't find that in me. The good that I would, I
don't do. What good are we talking about
here? We're talking about loving God with all our hearts, our
neighbors, ourselves, walking in perfect holiness, with perfect
thoughts, and perfect language, and perfect love, and perfect
grace, and perfect obedience. The good that I would... I don't
do that. The evil I would not do, that's what I do, he said. Verse 21, I find a law that when
I would do good, evil is present with me. I do delight in the
holiness of God, in the word of God, in the truth of God,
after the inward man. Verse 23, but I see another member,
a law in my mind. Do you see that? Most of these
preachers don't. I want people to, I want them
to gather around me and let me tell them, Jay, about Christ.
I don't want sinners to run from me. I don't want them to say,
well, he's a preacher, you know. Don't say that, he's a preacher.
Yeah, he is, but he's a human. And he needs Christ like you
do, and he needs grace like you do. I want to be, I'm not talking
about socializing with rebels, I'm not talking about condoning
men's misbehavior and so forth, but I'm talking about sympathizing
and understanding. That's what I'm talking about,
and this is my experience. Not a day goes by that I'm not
aware of my own sinfulness. How about you? And it has to
be by the grace of God that I am what I am. And then there's another
thing. Secondly, I know something of
the dullness of my heart in spiritual matters. You wonder why I don't
lash out at you for not praying like you ought to? I'll tell
you why I don't pray like I ought to. Now let's face it. I'll tell you one thing you can
watch about preachers. Somebody said, you can always
tell a preacher. And Jay said, but you can't tell him much. One thing you watch about preachers,
you get a man that's always harping on something. That's his problem. That's psychologists will tell
you that. He gets the maddest and phones at the mouth the hardest
and gets to working you over about something. That's his problem. find a preacher that's always
preaching on short shorts, and that's his problem. That's true. The one that's always lamb-basting
you because you're not giving, he ain't giving. The one that's
always blasting the people because they're not praying, he's not
praying. That's right. Most of the time, that's true.
But I'm saying this. I get, I know the dullness of
my heart. Prayer doesn't come easy for
you nor for me. Praise. I want to praise God
continually, don't you? I don't, but I'd like to. The
dullness of my heart is so obvious. Thanksgiving. I tell you, it's
pretty hard when you've got the backache to give thanks to God.
But we're supposed to, in all things, give thanks. That's right. All of these things. Lack of
faith. If I had the faith I should, I could move this mountain and
pay for that parking lot. But what I'm saying is this,
every day I'm made aware, not only of my obvious depravity,
but my dullness in spiritual matters, that by the grace of
God I am what I am. That's right. By the grace of
God. Not any merit in my own. And
thirdly, I see others depart from the faith and fall away.
And let me tell you this, I warn you, anybody who finds any pleasure
in anyone's fall doesn't know yourself. Anyone who can sit
around in smugness and complacency and in a self-righteous spirit
and find fault with anyone who strays or falls or stumbles,
God just might, if you're his child, you may not be his child,
but if you're his child, he just may let you taste the vinegar
to show you that you're capable. That's what I'm saying. And when
I see anyone else depart from the faith or fail, I say, it's
only by the grace of God that I am what I am. I stand by his
grace. Martin Luther stood before the
diet of worms and bold and courageously said, here I stand. But I believe
under his breath, he said, by the grace of God. By the grace
of God. You better add that. And then
I see this fourth, that the blessings and mercies of God upon me. Rather
than I tell you this, God's been so good to us, God is so good,
it scares me, doesn't it? God is so good, so gracious,
and that reminds me that every good gift and perfect gift is
all of grace. You're different, who made you
different? You can see, walk, talk, hear,
you love God, you know his gospel, you have a home, you have children,
you have a family, you have friends. It's all a gift of His grace.
Under God, thanksgiving ought to just spout out of us. It ought
to just bubble out of us. It ought not have to be squeezed
out of us. It ought not have to be preached out of us. It
ought to flow from us, Richard. Every day we ought to give thanks. I want to, don't you? Praise
God, from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures
here below. Praise Him above, ye heavenly
hosts. Praise Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost. Well, by the grace of God, I am what I am. That's my
experience. And then thirdly, that's my comfort.
I want to show you something over here in 2 Samuel 24. Turn over there and mark it.
You can read it later. Our time's completely gone. But
David numbered Israel. He shouldn't have. He shouldn't
have, but he did. He numbered Israel. God told
him not to, but he did it anyhow. In 2 Samuel 24, verse 10. God
came to him, and verse 10, David's heart smote him after he had
numbered the people. 2 Samuel 24, 10, and David said,
I've sinned. I've sinned greatly in what I've
done, and I beseech you, Lord, take away the iniquity of your
servant. I've done very foolishly. But when David was up in the
morning, the word of the Lord came to him, and in verse 13,
so the prophet of God came to David and told him, take your
choice. Shall seven years of famine come
upon you? Will you flee three months before
your enemies while they pursue you? Or that there be three days
of pestilence in your land? Now advise and see what answer. I'll go and tell the Lord. What
do you want? What do you want done, David? David said unto
the prophet, Verse 14, now here's the key. I am in a great strait.
Let us fall now into the hand of the Lord. His mercies are
great. Let me not fall into the hand
of man. In other words, what David is saying, he's saying
whatever punishment, whatever trial that must come upon me
and our people because of what I've done, Let it come from God. I'd rather fall into His hands
because He'll do right. And He'll act in mercy. He'll
temper justice with mercy. And that's my comfort. You see
what I'm talking about? By the grace of God, I am what
I am. And He'll always, whatever He does for me, will be for my
good and His glory. And David knew that. Whatever
God did to him or his family, would be for their good and God's
glory. And that was, he found comfort in that. And let me give
you the last thing now, and then you might look at Romans 8, 28,
all things work together for good to them who love God, who
are called according to His purpose. Some of these things you're going
through right now, they're not happy experiences right now,
but God ordains all things for our good. and for his glory,
and whatever these experiences are, the sovereign God is the
first cause of all things. There are second causes, but
God's always the first cause, and we can rest in that. All
right, here's the last thing. This is my testimony. By the
grace of God, I am what I am. Now, if this is truly my testimony
and my experience, then in this, let me be of all men humble. You know what John Newton said?
For a recipient of God's grace to be proud is the most inconsistent
thing in the universe. I mean proud. And that's one
of our chief sins, one of our chief offenses, P-R-I-D-E. God said, I hate it. When he
talked about the six things, there's seven that were an abomination,
he said, I hate pride. Oh, pride's got a grip on our
lives and hearts, and we're just beggars at the back door of mercy
who've got a handout by God's grace that we don't deserve.
Proud. And then secondly, if this is
my testimony, let me learn to love. Not only love him who's
the fountain of grace, and not only love those who share that
grace, but love those who know nothing about that grace. In this, let me learn to be generous.
Freely I have received, freely I give. In this, let me learn
to be grateful. In this, let me learn the hardest
lesson of all. Turn to Psalm 27, I suppose the
most difficult lesson of all. And David said in Psalm 127,
verse 13, I would have fainted would have been too much, unless
I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the
living. Wait on the Lord. Be of good courage, and He'll
strengthen your heart. Wait, I say, on the Lord. Our Father, for Thy Word we give
thanks, and for this blessed time together. It's been a happy
time. It's been a joyful time. It's been a precious time. You've
been so gracious and good to us. We thank you. Lord, we would
not make any effort to wax eloquent or even to get emotional, nor
to seek the sympathy of people. But Lord, we would like openly
and lovingly and plainly to say before thee and before the congregation
of thy people and our friends and loved ones and family, by thy grace we are what we are,
chosen, redeemed, called and kept. There's nothing in us that
would cause you to love us. There's nothing in us that would
cause you to bless us. It's all in Christ. We praise you and thank you.
We give thee the glory.